The best piece of writing advice I ever received

Best-selling Author of the Waverly Bryson Series, and 2015 International Book Award Winner

It took me nearly five years to get my first novel, Perfect on Paper, published, so when it finally happened I was over the moon. I’d worked my tail off to make it happen, and after all that effort, at long last I could exhale, sit back, and enjoy myself as the sales rolled in.

Or so I thought.

Needless to say, the sales didn’t roll in, and I was more than a little disappointed.

I remember voicing my frustration to my editor on a phone call one day. “Why isn’t my book doing better?” I asked him. While I can’t remember his exact response, I’ll never forget the essence of it. He calmly told me that I should write another novel, then another. He said that success wouldn’t happen overnight, that it was important to build a body of work if I wanted to make a living as an author.

While they weren’t what I wanted to hear at the time, I took his words to heart and soon began writing a second novel, then a third. Now I have seven (with number eight releasing next month!), and I make a living as an author. My editor was right. It didn’t happen overnight, and it happened only because I kept writing. I will always be grateful to him for his sage counsel.

Other great pieces of advice I’ve heard over the years include:

*If there’s a story you want to tell, tell it

*To write a book, all you really need is an interesting character (or characters) who is (are) in an interesting situation–then go from there

*All major characters should want something

What is the best piece of writing advice you’ve ever received? Please share in the comments. I would love to hear from everyone who reads this post. Just think of how much we could all learn from one another!

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